News: Optoelectronics
21 January 2025
Thorlabs acquires strategic partner Praevium Research
Vertically integrated photonics product maker Thorlabs Inc of Newton, NJ, USA has acquired Praevium Research Inc of Goleta, CA, USA, which was founded by Dr Vijay Jayaraman in 2001 and develops high-speed tunable vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs). The two firms have been working together since 2008, when Praevium became a member of Thorlabs’ Strategic Partner Program.
Over the past 17 years, Praevium has partnered with Thorlabs on the development and commercialization of several novel technologies, including the MEMS-VCSEL Swept-Wavelength Laser Sources, Swept Source OCT Systems at 1060nm and 1300nm, and broadband SLD Light Sources for OCT applications.
“Praevium’s expertise and innovation in high-speed tunable MEMS-VCSEL laser design and fabrication has been instrumental to our success in bringing innovative lasers to the optical coherence tomography (OCT) medical device market and enabling our own OCT product lines,” comments Thorlabs’ president Jenn Cable. “I look forward to using our combined expertise to accelerate product development and commercialization.”
“Thorlabs has been a fantastic partner for nearly two decades, and we have been honored to work with them to develop advanced laser technology that is improving the quality of human life across the globe,” says Praevium’s founder Vijay Jayaraman. “We are excited to join this world-class organization and multiply the impact of MEMS-VCSELs and other emerging photonics technologies across a broad variety of biomedical, sensor and other applications.”
As a division of Thorlabs, Praevium will maintain its existing leadership, with Christopher Burgner as its general manager and Vijay Jayaraman as a senior scientist. It will continue to conduct business under the Praevium Research name operating out of its existing facility a short distance from Santa Barbara, CA, and maintain its focus on developing novel semiconductor lasers and detectors in partnership with the Thorlabs team in Jessup, MD.
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